US travellers will need to mask up on planes, trains and buses through at least May 3.
The US Federal airline mask mandate, increasingly unpopular among both passengers and crew, was extended for a further 15 days by the Biden administration on Wednesday.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is closely monitoring the spread of omicron, including the BA.2 subvariant.
“Since early April, there have been increases in the 7-day moving average of cases in the U.S. In order to assess the potential impact the rise of cases has on severe disease, including hospitalizations and deaths, and health care system capacity, the CDC Order will remain in place at this time,” the CDC said in a statement.
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White House press secretary Jen Psaki cited the case increase in explaining the fifth federal mask mandate extension.
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“So what they’re trying to do is give a little bit more time to assess its potential impact the rise of the cases had on severe disease, including hospitalization and deaths and healthcare system capacity.”
She added “at the end of that two weeks they can determine what’s next after that.”
Republican Senator Roger Wicker said Wednesday the administration “continues to force unnecessary and contradictory mask mandates on the public,” while Democratic Senator Ed Markey applauded the extension “given the recent rise in COVID-19 cases.”
In the days leading up to the previous mandate’s expiry, airline executives and politicians piled on pressure for the Biden administration to let Covid-19 mask rules expire.
US airlines led the call to end the mandate, with chief executives of seven carriers including American Airlines, United Airlines and Delta Air Lines telling President Joe Biden in a letter last month that it was “no longer aligned with the realities of the current epidemiological environment”.
Delta CEO Ed Bastian said that “it’s time to let the masks go and let people decide.”
